Zafri Mudasser Nofil
(New Delhi, Apr 29, 2010) A Delhi couple falling in love while waiting for a traffic light to turn green in the capital will figure in one of the several stories of a new book by celebrated British writer Jeffrey Archer which will have a special India launch next week.
The story in question is about Jamwal and Nisha who fall in love while waiting at a traffic signal.
Thus begins one of the 15 stories Jeffrey has gathered from around the globe during the past five years in his sixth collection of enthralling short stories named And Thereby Hangs a Tale.
Landmark COO Himanshu Chakrawarti says the book will have a special India launch on May 4.
“The India release will be ahead of the global launch. And it is great to have Jeffrey for the occasion,” Chakrawarti told PTI.
Jeffrey is scheduled to visit Mumbai tomorrow and also open a new flagship store of Landmark there on May 4, his personal assistant Alison Prince said.
“This is such a short visit, only three days. He is only visiting Mumbai on this trip,” Prince told PTI.
“Some of the stories will make you laugh. Others will bring you to tears. And once again, every one of them will keep you spellbound.”
And Thereby Hangs a Tale is published by Pan Macmillan. The book is slated for a May 21 global release.
Jeffrey is the author of bestsellers like Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less, Kane and Abel, As the Crow Flies and First Among Equals.
A former Tory MP, he says the Indian story can be the perfect recipe for a Bollywood film.
“With permission of Eyjafjallajokull, I will be travelling to Mumbai on May 1, in order to open the new flagship Landmark bookstore on Tuesday May 4. In this collection of short stories (And Thereby Hangs a Tale) there is one set in Delhi – the story of Nisha and Jamwal – which I think is going to cause considerable interest on the subcontinent, not least because the true story is an obvious candidate for a Bollywood film,” he writes on his blog.
According to publishers Pan Macmillan, millions of readers around the world have relished Jeffrey’s short stories.
“Taking inspiration from his favourite short story writers – F Scott Fitzgerald, Maupassant, H H Munro, W Somerset Maugham and O Henry – Jeffrey has written five bestselling collections over the years and Macmillan are proud to announce the publication of a sixth volume of stories in May 2010.
“Jeffrey has a natural aptitude for short stories which are stylish, witty and entertaining. His mastery of characterization and suspense, combined with a gift for the unexpected, jaw-dropping plot twist, show him at the height of his powers and demonstrate why he is one of Britain’s best-selling authors,” the publishers said.
Besides the Delhi story, And Thereby Hangs a Tale tells the tale of a priceless oil painting that has remained in a German family for over 200 years, a young man trying to book a hotel room in Italy and ending up in bed with the receptionist and a British woman explaining to her husband why a pair of designer shoes couldn’t have gone up in flames.
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